Something Left to Save
by Halcyon.Promise
Summary: It wasn't supposed to be this way. If Eric's plans had worked the way he wanted, she wouldn't have been involved at all - but she is, now, and it's clear that something has to change. It's not too late to go back. It's not too late to fix it.


**A/N: Prompt was given to me by asirensrage over on tumblr. It was simply the song "Savior" by Rise Against - worth listening to, but especially as you read this. You can find me over on tumblr under the username paradigmflaws. There's a direct link on my profile here! I'd love for you to drop by and say hello.  
**

* * *

Something wasn't right.

It was a haunting feeling, nagging at the back of her mind with every quiet step that she took. The sun hadn't risen over the city, yet. Dauntless was sleeping - at least, as much as it ever did. There was a quiet rustle of movement from the lower levels, which was mildly surprising. After the celebrations for the new group of initiates, she would have thought more people would be sleeping off hangovers.

Being on shift had prevented her presence. It was poor scheduling, but one that she had acquiesced to without much complaint. Maybe that was why Eric had written it that way.

She reached her door and went to shoulder her way in. When the knob turned without resistance, she paused: it had always stuck. Always. For the last three years - ever since her own initiation into Dauntless - the knob had never turned right.

Narrowing her eyes at the oddity, the hesitation was enough. Behind the door - _her_ door - she heard the scuff of a boot.

What the-? Could it be Eric? She thought that he told her he was going to be busy. To just go sleep off her over-night shift and he would see her late morning. Her brow furrowed and she stepped to the side of the door frame.

Shoving it open, a round of - bullets? darts? - ricocheted off.

A blue clad man plunged forward through the door, and that was his mistake. Disarming him with a ruthless twist of the arm, she threw him to the ground.

She ducked, her shoulder meeting the torso of the other, and she flipped him over her back.

Pain laced down her thigh. A quick glance told her she was bleeding. Another glance told her that the men in blue - Erudite? - were getting to their feet.  
Her leg tingled, an uncomfortable precursor to numbness.

Reaching down to grab one of the guns that had been dropped in the melee, she took off running. She made it to the stairwell before her leg buckled at the pressure. Tucking herself into a ball, she let herself fall down the flight of stairs before staggering to her feet again.

What the fuck was Erudite doing in Dauntless?

Eric.

Where was Eric? He had to be told.

She shoved open the escape door to the stairwell and froze. A sea of uniform black marched, in a uniform step that was virtually unknown to the faction.

Hearing the sound of pursuers at her back, she slammed the door shut behind her and yanked at the metal handrail in the wall. Once, it had been securely anchored but time and decay had rusted its supports. Pulling it off, she shoved it through the handle of the door, keeping it from being pulled open again.

Turning her attention back to the black clad Dauntless who had all fallen into a uniform stride, she reached out to shake one of them. They didn't respond to her touch, to her call. Not even the ones she called by name.

What the _fuck_?

'This is bad' resonated through her brain - which she knew. The degree of bad was yet to be determined. Her mind raced.

Where could she find Eric? If Erudite were in the compound, it would be a risk going to the pit. The lower levels were the most accessible to the ground entrances and the most often traveled by visitors. His room? If something was going on he wouldn't be sleeping.

Fuckfuckfuck.

Monitoring room, then. It was the most logical place - if someone wasn't there who knew what was going on, she could at least see what was going on. Maybe Four would be there?

Her thoughts were interrupted by the echo of a gunshot drifting up from the depths of the compound. A chill threaded down her spine. No one else responded to it. They simply kept…marching.

She shivered.

Staggering forward, doing her best to keep her balance and momentum going as she felt numbness slowly trickle down her leg, she was ready to cry in joy when she saw Eric. He was shoving people out of his way. They fell back into step after he passed, she noticed - no one shoved back. No one protested. No one even looked at him.

The lack of a response left nausea roiling in her gut.

Eric was here, though. It was going to be alright.

She lurched forward, her numbness coupling with relief as she crumpled. She would have fallen to the floor if Eric hadn't reached her first, his arms tight around her.

"Erudite," she gasped out, lungs burning with anxiety and exertion.

He cut her off. "What are you doing here? I told you to sleep off your shift!"

Fury had her recoiling. She couldn't pull herself out of his arms but it dammed up the flood of relief that had been set to wash over her. He was alright - but something else was horribly wrong. He was angry. Furious, the coldness in his voice told her.

"I told you," she snapped, her voice edged with something darker now. "There were Erudite. They shot as my door opened. A nerve agent, I think… Why were they there? Eric, what's going on!?"

He swore. For a moment, she felt as if her breath was being crushed from her lungs. As she had spoken his grasp tightened reflexively. It was an instinct that he hadn't quelled. Keeping her against him, she felt like a doll as he spun around, his long stride carrying them both through the halls. He didn't even give her the chance to walk.

Shoving his way into the offices of the Dauntless leadership - she noticed as they passed that they were empty - she was dropped unceremoniously on his desk. Tension threaded through him. His swearing made little sense to her.

"That bitch," Eric cursed, his knuckles white with pressure as he clenched his hand into a fist. "You were supposed to be safe."

Her stomach dropped out. "Sa—Eric, safe from what?! What is going on?"

Hysteria threatened to unfold her voice to a shout. She forcibly leashed it and finally, in a voice devoid of emotion, she asked him the question that mattered most. "Eric, what do you know?"

Her fingers curled around the edge of the desk that she sat on. Eric had reached into a drawer, withdrawing a med-kit and was carefully cleaning the injury she had sustained.

At least, she guessed as much. With the numbness in the leg, she couldn't exactly feel it.

She reached out with one hand, her palm cupping his cheek. It stayed his movement and he looked up at her. His eyes were cold.

"Eric, what do you know?"

He swallowed.

"Dauntless is under a simulation and going to Abnegation. Select members of Dauntless are still awake to direct operations. Abnegation leadership will be exterminated and Jeanine will be able to act without them circumventing her plans."

She looked ill. His answer was rehearsed. It was too precise, too curt. He stood, but she didn't let go of touching him. His cheek was outside of her reach but her fingers threaded into the front of his vest.

"And the Erudite security?" evoked a reaction. He lurched away from her, a fist slamming into the wall. "You weren't supposed to be touched." Eric swore again as he turned back to her. This time, his eyes were narrowed. "You weren't going to be put under the simulation."

She went white. Could he-? Did he? "Why, Eric."

His hand cupped her jaw as he towered over her. "We both know what would happen if you were put under a sim," he breathed. "I couldn't risk her knowing."

Her world rocked. Eric had known? When? For how long? _Why_? The list of questions seemed endless, but bigger things were at risk. Her hand fell to his wrist, clamping about it tightly.

"Clearly she knows. I'm assuming Matthews is behind the security in my room. Everyone knows she wants divergents dead."

She felt Eric recoil under her hand at the word, but she forged forward. "She can't do this, Eric. You can't let her. I can't believe you _helped_her….but she's broken her word. We need to stop this. Now."

For a moment, she was afraid that Eric would remain silent. He was as still as a statue, staring down at her. His eyes were impassive, cold - they were the eyes of the Dauntless leader that terrified the majority of the faction. It wasn't the expression that she was used to seeing, not when he looked at her.

She threaded her fingers through his as she drew his hand away from her face. Cupping her other hand around the back, she went to stand.

"Jeanine needs to be stopped, Eric. Dauntless isn't her toy. You shouldn't be, either. Eric, you're _better than this_."

That finally got a response. He swore, yanking away from her hands. With deceptive gentleness, his palms settled at her waist, putting her back on his desk. Then he wheeled around, clearly intending to depart.

The scuff of boots were a strike against the heart.

"If you think I'm staying here, you don't know me very well."

Tendons in Eric's neck were visible as his teeth gritted. He spun back, grabbing her forearm. He didn't even argue as he dragged her into his arms.

Slamming out of his office, he took off into the corridors.

She recognized the path. "The control room?"

Eric didn't look down at her.

"We'll stop the simulation from there."

Her heart ached in sharp relief. But still, she felt choked - what would happen then? What had Eric _done_? It would be alright, she swore. It had to be. It was going to be alright.


End file.
